Two volume flush valve



Oct. 22, 1968 F. w. KERTELL 3,406,940

TWO VOLUME FLUSH VALVE vFiled oct. 4, 1965 BRS WAL KER Unitedl States Patent O1 ce 3,406,940 TW() VDLUME FLUSH VALVE Frank W. Kertell, Santa Cruz, Calif., assigner of one-half to Brooke Walker, San Francisco, Calif. Filed Oct. 4, 1965, Ser. No. 492,524 3 Claims. (Cl. 251-40) ABSTRACT F THE DISCLOSURE A llushing valve having two handles. Operation of one handle produces a minimum flow of liquid or low flushing volume without having to hold either handle in its tipped position. Operation of the other handle produces a maximum flow of liquid or maximum flushing volume.

valve and by relatively simple, easily attached addition of parts, make such a valve into a selective normal volume ush valve or a reduced volume flush valve.

Another feature is the use of two handles to control the flush-the longer one (that extends beyond the usual seat when raised) to control the lighter tlush and be easily reached by foot or hand while the seat is raised. The normal handle controls the usual flush volume and is easily raccessible with the seat down.

The usual ilush valve has a trip valve that rises rapidly after tripping and a diaphragm also rises until the trip valve is above the tripping mechanism and then it starts down with a telescoping sleeve preventing the hold up of the valve by the operator holding the trip valve in tlush position. In this invention the trip mechanism is altered so that the trip plunger has a slightly cone-shaped two diameter stepped end. The smaller diameter end is effective, only when the longer upper handle is pushed. This upper handle moves the trip plunger only in so that the small end only trips the telescoping end of the valve. The telescoping end having been shortened by the difference between the diameter of the small and larger end, the valve rises only until the telescoping sleeve passes over the upper side of this small end of the plunger.

When the regular valve is tripped, the larger diameter end of the trip plunger moves in so that the larger diameter end is under the telescoping end of the valve; the valve is then tripped by the small end and held tripped until it rises above the large end for a normal volume trip by requiring a longer time (than if tripped by the longer handle) for the diaphragm to return to shut olf the ow of flush fluid with about the same volume of ilush as is usual with this type of valve before modification.

Another feature is the saving of water, as the light flush takes only about 2 gallons of water while the regular valve and regular tlush takes about 5 gallons of water, more or less. By using such a valve it is possible to save about 10 gallons of water per day per person. With 10 million people in a large metropolitan area such as in New York the saving could be 100,00() gallons per day. This would be fa-r cheaper than developing this much more water and distributing it or desal'ting an equal amount of water.

3,406,940 Patented Oct. 22, 1968 Another feature is to reduce the volume of water to be handled in the sewage disposal plant.

Another feature is to reduce the adsorption requirement for a rural septic tank and adsorption eld that is often critical in many areas.

Other features will be pointed out in the accompanying Vspecification and claims.

I have illustrated my invention in the accompanying drawings, in which;

FIG. l is a cutaway side view of a llush valve showing one form of my invention.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged view of the trip rod and telescoping valve end portion of FIG. 1 in the tripped valve returning position.

In all ligures like numerals of reference refer to corresponding parts.

`In FIGS. 1 and 2 I have shown a trip valve 10 with a main body portion 11. A raised seat portion 12 receives valve 13. Diaphragm or valve member 13 has bleed hole 14 in a metal insert 14a. Diaphragm 13 is secured to housing 11 by cover 20 and inner cover 21 which does not rotate when cover 20 is tightened by rotating on its threads. Trip valve 25 has stem 26 with an enlagred end 26a which supports slidably mounted sleeve 27.

The usual trip handle 30 is supported by open cup 31 which is secured by nut 32 to portion 11a of body 11. Guide 33 may be of plastic, such as nylon, Teflon, etc., and have Ia seal 34 for sealing the water and reducing friction and corrosion.

Plunger 40 has head end 41 abutting against trip handle 30 and urged in that direction by spring 44 which also holds handle 30 in the position shown, by the heel action of the lip 30a of handle 30 on the lip 31a of cup 31. When handle 30 is pushed or pulled in any direction, it moves plunger 40 inwardly (or to the left, as viewed in FIGS. l and 2) so that ends 40a and 42 intercept telescoping end 27 and valve 25 rises until end 27 passes above enlarged end 42 after which valve 25 starts down as controlled by bleed 14 in diaphragm 13. The center portion of diaphragm 13 having moved up rapidly with the tilting of valve 25, if handle 30 is held down or in trip position valve 25 will still start down las telescoping end 27 will rise on stem 26, as shown in FIG. 2. As valve 25 and diaphragm 13 move down together diaphragm 13 will seat on the upper end of seat portion 12 to shut off the flow of flush liquid. When a light Hush is desired, handle 50 which has end 50a extending beyond a raised seat 52 pushes handle 30 in a limited distance due to the clearance between the heel 50c and its supporting bracket 43. Such a limited distance or motion of handle 30 as controlled by handle 50 allows plunger 40 to move in only as far as is shown in FIG. 2 where portion 40a is under the lower edge of sleeve 27 but portion 42 is not.

Therefore, valve I25 starts down as soon as sleeve 27 passes over end 40a and a light flush is thereby controlled. The normal (about 5 gallon) flush is controlled when valve 25 is tripped until telescoping end 42 moves under `sleeve 27 to hold valve 25 tripped until telescoping sleeve 27 has passed above the upper face of larger plunger end 42.

The advantages of this device are that only a slight change is necessary in: the length of the sleeve 27, the end of plunger 40 is altered to provide ends which are 40a and 42 preferably constructed with slightly coned faces for easy slide off of sleeve 27, the clamp on bracket 43 is secured to the outer circular surface of cup 31 by clamp screw 51 which also serves as a pivotal support for trip lever 50. Ends 50b abut against the reduced diameter portion 30b of handle 30 to control the limited pushing movement downward of handle 30 for the light flush control when portion 40a only moves into contact with or under telescoping sleeve 27.

By this device a dual selected flush can be achieved by easily adapted accessories to a conventional flush valve, to modify new valves for two volume ush, or to modify valves in use to selected ush of two different volumes.

A conventional flush valve is shown in the folder entitled Sloan Flush Valves, Catalog 60, A.I.A. 29-H-21, page 47. This provides only one volume of flush by the handle shown.

I have illustrated my invention in these various forms; however, many other variations may be possible with in the scope of this invention.

To those skilled in the art towhich this invention relates many changes in construction and Widely differing embodiments and applications of the invention will suggest themselves without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. The disclosures and description herein are purely illustrative and are not intended to be in any sense limiting.

I claim as my invention:

1. A valve comprising a body, an inlet conduit connected to said body, an outlet conduit extending into the body with the end therein forming a valve seat, a valve member mounted in the body for engagement with the seat, handle means mounted on the body, means connecting the handle means and valve member for selectively moving the valve member to a pair of preselected positions away from the seat whereby to provide for ow of dierent quantities of liuid, said handle means comprising separate handles and said connecting means comprising means connecting one handle to said valve member to move said valve member a predetermined distance from the seat and means connecting the other handle and said valve member to move the valve member a greater distance from the seat, the valve member comprising a diaphragm having -a bleed opening and an orice therethrough, a tiltable trip valve mounted over the orifice to allow uid flow therethrough when tilted, and a stern connected to the said trip valve, the means connecting each handle to the valve member comprising a single plunger for both handles slidably mounted in the body for contact With the stem.

2. A device as defined in claim 1 wherein said plunger is of a preselected diameter at one end and of larger diameter at a zone adjacent said end.

3. A device as defined in claim 2 wherein one of said handles is pivotally mounted to bear directly on the plunger and the other of the handles is pivotally mounted to engage the first handle.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS Re. 20,576 12/1937 Sloan 251-40 X 2,188,216 1/1940 Beecher 251-289 2,620,826 12/ 1952 Johns 251-40 2,776,812 1/ 1957 Colendar 251-40 1,519,654 12/1924 Banta 251-45 X 2,738,946 3/1956 Filliung 251-40 X ARNOLD ROSENTHAL, Primary Examiner. 

